How to explain to a child what a soul is. Question: How to explain to a child what the soul is? Where does the soul go after death, and where do new souls come from?

16.09.2011, 00:00

We were talking with our son about something and I said: “So that the soul feels good,” followed by the question: “What is the soul?” But I can’t somehow formulate it so that a 6-year-old child can understand it. In such cases, my parents had a standard answer: “When you grow up, you’ll know,” and I really didn’t like it. What would you answer?

Lyusya-Mamusya

16.09.2011, 00:25

I would take him to the priest to talk.

16.09.2011, 01:38

I would answer that this is what is in every person. What gives him life. What helps him make friends, love and be good and kind. Enough for a three year old, I think

16.09.2011, 01:50

Iron-

16.09.2011, 01:53

16.09.2011, 02:05

At this particular moment, I would answer that many people call conscience the soul. True, then the question will arise: what is conscience? :))

16.09.2011, 02:09

I wouldn’t be able to explain to a three year old what conscience is :)
And the author’s 6-year-old child can probably already be explained. :)

Iron-

16.09.2011, 02:10

I wouldn’t be able to explain to a three year old what conscience is :)

It would probably be easiest to explain with some example.

Aaaaand, I looked at the youngest one in the line, and only then I re-read that she was communicating with her son :)

16.09.2011, 12:16

It would probably be easiest to explain with some example.
Yes, I also tend to explain with examples. Today I explained with examples what information is :). In general, the child did not have a period of questions for a long time, but now they started pouring in.

Thank you very much everyone for the answers, I’ve gathered my thoughts, I’ll go tell you

16.09.2011, 13:06

when my daughter asked this question, I told her that this is a small invisible lump that lives inside everyone

16.09.2011, 13:07

My daughter also asked about the soul. I also prefer not to evade answers to the child, so I told it like it is.
I explained that a person has a body and a soul. That the soul is essentially a person, and the body is his “shell” that he needs to live on Earth. I said that the soul is immortal, but the body is not, etc.
In general, she then asked a lot more about this topic, but in the end she seemed to understand it.

Thank you! :flower:
simply superbly formulated: support:

16.09.2011, 13:16

Conscience is a feeling of shame for a wrongly done or undone deed, deed, word, attitude... And with a clear conscience, it means there is nothing to “scrape inside” and nothing will hurt inside either. (Not to be confused with grievances). How did she explain it?

I think that parents should explain and know such things to themselves, and be the first to tell their children about it. Why doesn't this happen -...

16.09.2011, 13:17

16.09.2011, 13:41

to my child, in my opinion, my grandmother gave an explanation about the soul.... since he himself tried to explain to me what it is (everyone has a soul, when a person dies, the soul remains, etc.)
Okay, soul, I explained and thank you, we added that he didn’t understand... but my grandmother tried to drag religion into it (mom, why don’t you wear a cross? You MUST be baptized, everyone should be baptized and wear a cross... grandma says so: 010 : you are wrong, but grandma is right:010:)
In response, I got him a thick volume of the religions of the world and conducted a small educational program (you see how many religions there are and only in Christianity they wear a cross, and there is, for example, Buddhism, ... everyone chooses a religion according to their liking or remains outside of religion, a person who believes in good , honesty, love, remains a person with a pure, open and bright soul)....kind of thinking...

Sorry for being off topic...

IoanninaCheka

16.09.2011, 15:08

16.09.2011, 15:34

Still, conscience and soul are not quite the same thing, in my opinion.
I explained it to the child, he seemed to understand, and he listened with interest. That a person consists of soul and body. The soul is inside the body. The soul has feelings. When we like or don’t like someone, it’s the soul that speaks; when we feel good (the soul feels good), then we want to sing, smile, and give gifts. If someone close to us feels bad, or if we see that a dog has hurt its paw and is whining, we feel sad. The soul can cry, even if a person does not cry at the same time. It can be hard on the soul. If you did something bad (for example, you broke a vase, threw out the pieces, didn’t tell anyone, then your mother looks for this vase and doesn’t know what is useless to look for), your soul may be heavy and you will want to come and tell. Mom will forgive and my soul will immediately feel better. This is the explanation

16.09.2011, 15:37

*Soul is all the good that a person has. It is located where the heart is.
When a person “passes away,” his soul ascends to heaven and the person looks from there at his loved ones. And the body is lowered underground.
The soul of a loved one is up there looking at everyone he loves. And when you say his name, he turns in your direction and looks and listens to you.*

This is how I explained it to my son.
The conversation started after watching "The Musketeers"...
Thank God that all our loved ones are near us.

P/S He also knows about the black soul. Oddly enough, our old films helped us. A lot of good things can be found there.
Very good explanation, thank you!

Sri Chinmoy: I will answer this question with great joy, because only a child can spontaneously ask a question about the soul. The soul is a conscious particle of God. It came directly from God, dwells directly in God, and will return to God. The soul is light, which is called consciousness. The child will not understand what consciousness is, so we can tell him that the soul is what transmits our thoughts, ideas, messages to God. The soul is the messenger who comes to God and conveys our message to Him; she understands our language and, at the same time, understands the language of God.

When a child speaks the truth, when he acts well, when he makes you happy with something, you can tell him that his soul asked him to do all this. You can also tell the child that the soul is the real owner, the master of the body. As he plays with a toy, so does the soul play with him. The child knows that he can do whatever he wants with his toy, but nothing will happen to him. If he wants to play with it, he will play with it, if he wants to break it, he will break it, and if he gets tired of playing with it, he will throw it away. The same goes for the soul: if the soul wants to stay in the body and play with it, it will play. If the soul is tired of the game and wants to return to its Father, God, it will return.

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Dear N.,

Children under seven years of age (and even older) think only concretely (therefore arithmetic in elementary school they are explained using apples and sticks), they are still unable to perceive abstract concepts. Therefore, when we try to tell a child about what “good”, “G-d”, “soul” are in words that reveal the essence of these concepts, the child is best case scenario begins to fidget in his chair and discuss why Uncle Dima has one ear sticking out more than the other. Categories spiritual world they need to be explained exactly when they appear - using specific examples from life.

At the same time, for example, the word “soul” (if we are talking about this concept now) should be heard at home, that is, the child should hear it from his parents in their everyday conversations. For example, “I feel in my soul that...”, or “This person has high soul", or "In my heart I agree with him."

The wording does not matter, the main thing is that the child hears, without yet fully understanding the meaning of this word, that “soul” is a part of our life, one of the aspects of being. Or, for example, one of the parents looks at the fire (in nature, in the forest, on a hike or at home, lighting gas: “Just as fire always strives upward, so the soul of a person always strives towards G-d.” For small child this phrase is just a set of words, but at this stage this is not important, but what is important is that words create communication channels in the child’s brain, which are still almost empty. Over time, when his understanding is enriched, they will be filled with content.

It is worth talking to your child about the soul, giving a brief thesis and then supporting it with a specific example. For example: “The soul is a piece of G-d in a person, and therefore we must respect other people: because they have a piece of G-d in them,” and then we tell an incident from life (or from a book) about a person who retained his dignity and the dignity of another in a difficult situation. Or this: “A person’s soul helps him not to lose hope and faith in goodness,” and we tell a story about how people did not lose hope and fought to the end, supporting each other in difficult conditions. And so on.

It is best if the child asks the question himself, because then he will listen more carefully to the answer. Therefore, if he asks questions about life and death, for example, after hearing the news (God forbid) about a murder or terrorist attack, it is important to talk about the prohibition of murder: only God gives the soul, and only He has the right to take it away. And when the soul leaves a person, the person dies, the body is lowered into the ground, and the soul returns to G‑d. And she tells Him about the good and evil deeds that she did in life. And G-d rewards the soul for good and punishes for evil. (There is no need to describe the punishment in vivid colors or dwell on this topic for a long time, this can frighten an impressionable child, you just need to note this - that’s all).

Regarding your second question - What is the Jewish understanding of the soul and spirit of man?

Rav Chaim Volozhiner, in his commentary on Tractate Avot (“Teachings of the Fathers”), writes that, just as shoes cover the very bottom human body, so the body covers the lowest step human soul. That is, the body is the outer shell of the soul, but not even all its components. The soul itself is immeasurable more body, and the highest part of it is located more in the spiritual worlds than in the body.

In material terms, humans have no advantage over animals; on the contrary, many animals are much stronger and faster than humans. The only reason to respect a person is his mind, his spirituality. How more people connected with the spiritual, the more he is able to respect others.

The goal of man is to place spirit over matter, reason over animal instincts and desires. Or, more precisely, to direct matter, instincts and desires towards the path of good and turn them into tools for the work of the soul. The soul itself is helpless without a body, and it needs a body in our material world to manifest oneself, to reveal the Divine in matter. To bring light and goodness into the world.

For children aged 4 to 6 years, words such as happiness, love or friendship are abstract concepts that they find difficult to comprehend.

If you want with early years To instill in your child the main values, you need to explain to him their meaning in as simple and understandable a language as possible.

How to explain to a child what joy is?

In order for the baby to understand what joy is, parents should first tell him that there is two types of emotions: positive and negative.

Fear, sadness, anger are negative feelings, and joy is the opposite state that occurs if something pleasant happens in life. For clarity, parents can give their child examples of events that can evoke positive emotions. This could be buying a new toy; a walk in clear sunny weather; interesting games with peers, or, for example, mother’s kind and tender words.

It is important to explain to your child that the more reasons he finds for joy in life, the more cheerful and positive his mood will become.

How to explain to a child what happiness is?

Happiness is a state of highest satisfaction with one's life. In order for a child to correctly understand what this word means, he needs to explain that at happy people there are many joyful events happening in life, and if any troubles arise, they easily survive them. It is very pleasant to communicate with them, they always smile, dress neatly and beautifully, and also do good deeds and try to help other people. To develop a state of happiness, it is important to be able to cope with negative emotions.

For example, if a child is upset about something, he can play sports, breathing exercises, take a shower or talk on the phone with best friend. The baby must understand that happy man doesn't dwell on troubles, is not nervous, thanks to which he has good health and always a cheerful mood.

How to explain to a child what friendship is?

If a child is interested in what friendship is, you can tell him that it is a warm and positive attitude towards another person. Thanks to friendship, people become kinder, more sympathetic and stronger in spirit. Friends help in work, in school, rejoice in successes and always come to the rescue in difficult times.

It is important to convey to the child that a true friend will accept him with all his shortcomings, you can not only play and have fun with him, but also share your feelings, secrets, and experiences.

Friendship will last for a long time only if it is mutual. You can't just use it kind attitude another person, you yourself need to do good deeds towards him.

How to explain to a child what conscience is?

Conscience is a feeling of shame for committing some unworthy action. At an early age it is very important to explain to children, which actions are considered good and which are considered bad. It is necessary to convey to them that to act according to your conscience means not to offend other people, do not harm them, otherwise their heart will be very worried because they did wrong.

For clarity, you can give the child examples from his life, for example, remind him how worried he was when he deceived his friend and he was very upset because of this. The child should be explained that people with a clear conscience are not tormented by a feeling of shame, since they always behave honestly and do only good deeds.

How to explain to a child what Love is?

When talking to a child about love, you need to emphasize that This is a very strong emotion that is expressed in a positive attitude towards another person. Warm feelings can be felt not only for parents, but also for close relatives, friends or animals.

It’s better to explain using real life examples. Pay attention to the baby that it is very important for him to spend a lot of time with mom and dad; he likes to hear kind words from them, receive attention and support. All these emotions indicate that he loves them very much.

It is important to explain to the baby, how love is shown. It is expressed not only kind words, but also confirmed by actions. For example, you can show your child how you show your love for him: by caring for him, teaching him new skills, rejoicing in his achievements. Emphasize that this feeling is selfless, you want to love the object, you want to make it happy, without expecting anything in return.

How to explain to a child what Family is?

Warmth and comfort reign in a strong, happy family, all loved ones respect each other, do not quarrel, they are always ready to help and provide support in difficult times. Explain to your child the value of family Parents can lead by example.

Draw his attention to how good it is that he has parents who love him very much and take care of him. You can also show your child children's picture books where families of fairy-tale characters or some animals are drawn. He must learn that family is what we should strive for in adult life in order to be truly happy.

How to explain to a child what Time is?

If you want your child to understand the concept of time, he should be taught not only to determine it by the clock, but also to explain that there are days, months, and also seasons. For the overall development of the baby, it is important that he is well oriented in time, so he needs explain what the terms “yesterday”, “tomorrow” and “today” mean.

In order for the baby to remember the days of the week well, he needs to associate them with some events. For example, on weekdays, he goes to kindergarten, and on Saturday and Sunday - to the zoo or to the puppet theater.

You can also touch on the topic of age, for example, take out photographs and show the preschooler what he was like before and how he has changed over several years.

How to explain to a child what Kindness is?

You can explain to your child what kindness is, using positive real life examples And. For example, if a child visited a sick friend, helped his grandmother in the kitchen, or played with his little sister, he should understand that all these actions were a manifestation of his good attitude.

Parents can cultivate this quality in a child, setting your own positive example. If the baby sees that everyone in the family treats each other well, does not conflict and does kind things towards other people, he begins to behave with others in the same way.

How to explain to a child what God and the soul are?

The most important thing that a child should know about God is that he is the Creator of our world: nature, people, animals, everything was created thanks to his powerful power. The Creator cares about all humanity living on Earth. He guides people wisely, wanting them to behave righteously and live a happy life.