Is this the place for it ....? Spare the rod and spoil the child ..comes into my mind ,as one screams and the other giggles and one toddler just stomps his feet and wails all this amidst a bhajan singing.where this takes place ,Shridi Sai Mandir in Singapore.The one place i go and sit and in silence I say my prayers and demand an answer from Sai...

This is my sanctuary , a place of worship. Where total silence is a must as people like me with mental tensions and problems sit and come to terms with their predicament.But these Parents do not even bother to control their children .Is it not a place of worship should be given due respect and the child taught to respect GOD ...We are after all in the presence of God .SAI .If really SAI was sitting there in person would we not have kept quiet ? SO it is after all a stone which is sitting there..how do we instill in our kids the importance of behaving appropriately in places ...temple is a place where we talk to GOD and respect others who are also there to talk to GOD ...when do we educate our little ones. Have you seen children running around in the a church or a mosque ..?

As i sat in deep thought a shrill scream jolted me and I could not help myself as i glared at the six children next to me and I clicked my fingers and stared.All the parents did was take to them the other side of the room and let the kids so their ruckus ....It takes time to edcucate the parents ...first ..the children have to wait ...when the elders themselves are so unsure on what is right and wrong ..how to blame the kids ..only pity that there is noone to correct them and make them a well behave adult ..for it all starts at the tender age..good behaviour ...

In a space of a few days two children caught my attention ..similar age groups....both of them Indians but one a Hindu another a Muslim.

One was in the news as the top student in the Indian category for a national exam where almost 50 000 children sit for the exams. I saw her being interviewed and also read the news paper articles. She talked about her study habits , her routine, and her hobbies..but one sentence resounded almost always ....by a young child of twelve .."by the grace of God " ..

I sat and felt a old familiarity with the words...I have heard somewhere , my lips felt easy with it....Yes I had similar beliefs as a child.I grew up in a very Orthodox family , where life was a round of prayers ,temples and swamjis. I sent out fervent prayers to the almighty for all my wants an desires. Nothing God could not do ..I reasoned and life was so good....then dark clouds came..

The day came when I felt cheated , God was not listening ...anger, tears and helpless ..my whole concept of Grace changed and the I was pushed to the theory of Karma where God can only lighten your burden ,you have to bear it. All my childhood stories came clashing down ...when Draupadi calls Krishna runs to her rescue..more stories when devotees call in anguish the gods rush to the rescue....I am calling my Krishna ..where are you reasoned my very young mind ....

I sincerely hope this girl will not go thru what I did ....where children are fed stories from mythology about Gods greatness and create a certain vision which one day is broken into thousands of pieces and a heart is never the same .....I hope the parents have schooled her in the proper philosophy of Hinduism...which is a very deep and beautiful religion .

The other child is a friend of my daughter and I have know her for the last seven years. A true Muslim child ..very devout child . Recently I saw her on line blog and I was fascinated by the group she had joined ..fascinated or should I say greatly disturbed and sad.the group is "All the people who are against the idea that Muslims are terrorists" A child who has been taught the goodness of her religion has to come to terms with public outcry about 911 and the recent mumbai attacks and many acts of terrorism which is attributed to this religion. I am sure she has to face her friends who will ask her ..."IS it not wrong to kill i in the name of religion ?" Are all Muslims Terrorist ? Children can be cruel.....

How does this child come to terms with her religion ? Or for that matter the other child who are too young to reason with clarity the subtle side of these great religions ?

I am fed up ..no more fights ...no more praying ...no more crying ............just existing ..come to the end of it all ...I can't go forth or backwards ..I see no light or darkness ....like being in a vaccum...