When people ask me what I do, I tell them I run an orgainsation that teaches meditation to kids. This is often met with a surprised expression, followed by the question- do kids need meditation?

The times that we grew up in, meditation for kids was unheard of. If anything, it would’ve been a laughable matter. But in today’s times, where competition is at an all-time high, kids are not only expected to excel in academics, but also various other things.

As a mother of a 7 year old, I find myself driving my son from music class to dance class to football practice- all after ensuring his ‘home fun’ is complete and he is prepared for his school the next day.

The easy solution- drop off all the extra stuff. But is the easy solution really so easy? I tried that but my son asks me- “Why can’t I go to dance when all my other friends are going? Why am I not taking abacus or Olympiad like the others? Am I not smart like them?”

On the other side of the ‘easy solution’ is the ‘fear of missing out’, not just in parents but in kids too, which adversely affects the kids’ mental health. Do you really want to take that chance?

The result- stress and burn out in early years (yes, stress in kids is a real thing!)

Having said that, in this technology driven, battery operated world, where all information is just a click away, we really need to ask ourselves if we are equipping our kids with the right tools that they need in order to lead a happy, fulfilled life. Long gone are the days when IQ alone was enough to determine the success of a child.

Everyone is smart and everyone knows how to say a command to google to find out what they need. So, what really determines success then? It is something called EQ (Emotional Quotient) that will be a distinguishing factor between the ‘successful’ and the ‘not-so-successful’ in the future. Emotional Intelligence is what humanises us in these data-driven, robotic times.

Emotional intelligence helps kids in recognising their emotions, labelling them, and thereafter regulating them in socially acceptable ways. It also helps them to recognise the emotions of others and respond appropriately- which is a very important tool to success, as they are able to direct the results in their favour.

A child with a high EQ is able to identify and diffuse negative emotions like anger, irritation, frustration, fear, jealousy without harming herself or those around her. She can also deal with failures and stress in a healthy way (let’s be real- how much ever we would like to keep our kids away from failure, at some point, they will have to face it), and therefore have good mental health.

Meditation helps kids deal with stress and build a high EQ. And that’s why it is the one thing we must teach our kids. With meditation as a strong foundation, kids are more confident, happy, calm and relaxed. They have a high self-esteem, good mental health and are able to influence those around them. Now these, I think, are reasons enough to teach meditation to our kids. What do you think? (Do share your thoughts by writing to us)