|
 A
Handbook
Concepts
& Tools for Guiding Children
Based on the Edgar Cayce Readings
SECTION (A) CHILDREN
AS SPIRITUAL SEEKERS
Chapter
1: Home
Parents
as Models
The
Home Setting
A
Balanced Lifestyle
A
Life of Service
Chapter
2: Touching the Source
The
Wonder of Nature
Prayer
and Meditation
Dreams
Intuition and Psychic Awareness
SECTION (B) MIND IS THE BUILDER
Chapter 3:
Guiding the Will
Keying
to Personality
Choice
and Purposeful Activity
Creative
Discipline
Presleep
Suggestion
Cooperation
Emphasizing
the Spiritual
Chapter 4:Encouraging
the Inquiring Mind
Imagination
Guided
Visualization
Following
Natural Interests
SECTION
(C) THE BODY IS THE TEMPLE
Chapter
5: Nutrition and the Cayce Diet
Chapter 6:
Exercise, Rest and Wholeness
Chapter 7:
Using the Cayce Remedies
A
Few Basic Procedures
Castor
Oil Packs
Spinal
Massage
Other
Cayce Remedies
Eyes
Head
and Neck Exercises
Potato
Poultices
Teeth
and Gums
Salt
and Soda
Ipsab
Respiratory
System and Ears
Mutton
Tallow and Camphor Rubs
Common
Cold Prevention and Relief
Glyco-Thymoline
Eucalyptus
Oil Inhalant
Eustachian
Tubes and Hearing
Skin
Skin
Conditioner
Scar
Massage
Warts
Compound
Joints
and Muscles
Epsom
Salt Packs and Soaks
Vinegar
and Salt Packs and Rubs
Muscle
and Bruise Liniment
Legs
and Feet
Coffee
Grounds
Myrrh
and Olive Oil
Callouses,
Corns, Bunions
REFERENCES AND RECOMMMENDED READING
INTRODUCTION
Over and over again, Edgar Cayce’s
psychic readings provided the information that all persons are spiritual
beings seeking re-connection or union with God. The readings suggested
that this innate soul impulse can be particularly nurtured in children,
and they gave specific ideas and recommendations to encourage such guidance
from parents and other adults.
According to the readings, children are
“mature souls in immature bodies.” The very possibility
that a child, as a reincarnating soul, has perhaps already had a great
deal of experience in the earth can enable us to view him/her in a different
light and help us to think more about the potential within each individual
regardless of age.
The readings also made it clear that the
type and quality of the home environment and guidance a child experiences
in the first 12-14 years of his/her life (and especially during the
first seven-year cycle, from birth to age seven) are of primary importance
to the development of the soul in that entire lifetime.
A study of the Cayce readings on child guidance
quickly reveals a number of basic principles that serve as the undergirding
of all the more specific techniques that follow, principles such as
settings ideals and teaching by example. Digging a bit deeper, it is
soon clear that we are being urged and inspired to be, say and do one
primary thing: LOVE. Or, put another way, to strive for the best in
every way in ourselves. Such an attitude communicates and teaches the
children in our care far more than any words or tools.
This handbook is intended as the first step
in a series to help you as parents and families make the Cayce concepts
part of your daily life. Although it is divided into three separate
sections, spiritual, mental and physical, it should be remembered that
such distinctions are for clarity and simplicity only, as these aspects
are totally interconnected. The body is the temple, and, if treated
with care, it will aid and cleanse the mind and spirit; the mind is
the builder, where bodily healing and change originates; and the spirit
is the life, infusing mind and body with transforming grace and beauty.
This essential oneness pervades the Cayce readings and is of utmost
importance.
This book is devoted to you and your children.
It incorporates many of the fundamental principles from the Cayce readings
and gives you a varied set of tools for implementing them in your own
home. The spiritual dimension is the foundation upon which all the suggestions
rest. The Cayce readings urged that children be exposed to people, surroundings,
and experiences that are inspirational and uplifting, demonstrating
the fruits of the spirit in action. The readings also encouraged a sense
of mystery and wonder, spoke of the value of nature and its inherent
spiritual content, and made suggestions for the nourishment and development
of a healthy body, imagination, and will.
Application is the true test of any principle.
We will welcome any of your own insights gained from using these concepts
over a period of time in guiding your children.
SECTION A–CHILDREN AS SPIRITUAL SEEKERS
Chapter 1: HOME
The Cayce readings stated unequivocally
that the home can be one of the most powerful influences possible in
the development of any soul in a lifetime. This makes the work of creating
a home of utmost importance. The spiritual, mental, and physical focus
and elements in a home enable everyone in it to see and develop in that
direction.
For the home is the nearest pattern in earth...to
man’s relationship to his Maker. For it is ever creative in purpose
from personalities and individualities coordinated for a cause, an ideal.
3577-1
Parents As Models
You are your child’s first hero in
this life. Your own spiritual ideal, your attitudes, thoughts, actions
and reactions all have an enormous cumulative impact on what your child
senses, desires–and becomes. Not that anyone is perfect! (And
your child already brings much with him or her in individuality from
past lives.) But there is much to be gained by looking closely at yourself
and at the images you project to your child. Then you can prepare yourself
to be the person, the example you knowingly want to be.
The following are suggested activities to
help you enhance your self-awareness and point a direction for the tone
of your home.
- Set your own spiritual
ideal, and keep some small reminder of it around where you can see
it daily.
- Meditate regularly so
that you are daily attuned to your spiritual source.
- Make a list of all your
personal strengths, then list your weaknesses. Find a hidden strength
in each of your weaknesses.
- Think of several qualities
you would like to have as a parent. Then take each quality
and visualize yourself doing something that would show that quality.
- Observe your marriage
or long-term relationships. Remember some times of special unity and
harmony, and feel again the feelings that you had then. Imagine yourself
sending those same feelings to the entire family.
- Find time to spend with
friends who share your spiritual ideal. Share and gain from each other’s
awareness and experience.
- Take time daily (and
special occasions once in awhile) for personal self-work: exercise,
rest, journaling or visualizing, spiritual exercises.
- Write down your dreams,
and gain insights from them about yourself, your home, and your potential.
The Home Setting
The readings indicated that each soul actively
chooses the individuals through whom he/she incarnates and the environment
in which he or she manifests, to meet the conditions and purposes desired
for a particular lifetime. The setting and atmosphere of the home–physical,
psychological, and spiritual–are created from all who participate
in it, and they constantly give images to all who draw from them: you,
your spouse, your child, and any others who are frequently in the home.
If your family is constantly surrounded by the experience, consciousness,
and symbols of the spiritual Source, that will become the directing
force. Otherwise, whatever other forces are predominant will be the
guiding elements in the life of the home and family.
The
following are suggestions for observing your home environment and making
it closer to your ideal for it.
- Take a walk through
your home and sense the physical elements–how do they “feel”
and what do they suggest?
- Visual: colors, pictures
and objects, areas of light and space, angles (round, sharp, detailed),
presence of nature indoors or through windows, etc.
- Auditory: music, sounds
of nature, your usual tone of voice and that of others in the family.
- Olfactory (and taste):
general aroma of each room, flowers or nature, food (fresh or cooking)
- Touch: temperature,
furniture and textures
- Envision the home of
someone else you know (parents, friends). Look around you and get
a sense of some of the things that make you feel good there.
- Talk over with your
spouse what would be an appropriate home ideal (e.g., a place for
peacefulness, a place where one feels loved). Pray about it together
and meditate on what word or words would be best for your family.
Look for small ways to include symbols of your ideal, or things that
suggest it, at home (in arrangements, music, books, pictures, photos,
food, yard or garden, etc.)
- Experiment with and
enjoy informal family rituals and occasions that embody your home
ideal (e.g., a special greeting in the morning or at bedtime, little
pictures or notes on a table, unexpected little items at meals, a
reading or storytelling time, a prayer or music time, nature walks,
special bedtime talking time, shared meditation, family nights with
songs, games, projects or events; special seasonal celebrations as
a family.)
- Walk through a day in
your child’s shoes. Imagine yourself in your child’s bed
waking up. Sense vividly what you see, hear, feel. Consider what you
sense most strongly physically and emotionally.
- Talk over with your
child all the things you and your child like best to look at, be near,
and do in your home. What feelings do you share there?
 A
Balanced Lifestyle
Balance in all things was one of the keynotes
of the Cayce readings–enough of each part of life but not too
much. Such balance included finding equivalent time for physical, mental
and spiritual activities, time alone and time with others, regular routines
but not forced rituals, time for work and time for play. The readings
also emphasized the finding of natural rhythms. In the home all of these
elements are constantly in motion, and it is often the awareness of
the parents that brings about the balance, as well as the parents’
creativity that restores balance when it has been upset.
The following is as a checklist you might
use occasionally to see if your home and lifestyle are in balance.
Did your family yesterday
(or today):
- Enjoy physical, mental,
and spiritual activities?
- Have time for the individual
and time for the group?
- Have a general rhythm
for the day (meals, work, play, sleep, etc.) though not rigid routines?
- Have time for work and
time for play?
- Have time for both seriousness
and humor?
- Have time for spontaneity
and for an enjoyed ritual?
A Life of Service
One of the primary focuses in the Cayce
readings was on selfless doing for others, on living the Golden Rule.
This very giving is a spiritual act, for by constantly doing small kindnesses
a child comes more and more into it as a consciousness and becomes more
attuned to the spiritual force of Love behind the rule.
The following are suggestions for making
kindness a way of life and a spiritual attunement.
- Read or tell stories
(or use guided visualizations) that nurture compassion for others’
hopes and feelings that show kind acts to others.
- Pray with your child
for other people, asking that you may be channels of blessing to others.
- Repeat a verse or poem
each day about kindness, and praise your child when he or she puts
such a consciousness into action.
- Do a kind deed each
day! This can be in words, thoughtful deeds, small tokens of caring,
etc., to family, friends, relatives, or persons in need.
- Express your own love
to your child often. This, too, can be done by words, notes, thoughtful
remembrances, little awarenesses, etc.
- Allow your child to
help you. Ask her or his advice about little things at home.
- Do kind things for others
as part of a larger group (family, neighborhood, organization, etc.)
that is in harmony with your spiritual ideal.
CHAPTER 2–TOUCHING THE SOURCE
Since the spiritual dimension was of such
primary importance in all the Cayce readings, it is not surprising that
there were frequent suggestions made to individuals that they needed
to be more in touch with, or in tune with, their spiritual Source. Such
contact brings growing peace, greater awareness of the Creative Forces,
and gradual awakening of the soul.
 The
Wonder of Nature
The readings indicated that close association
with nature and attunement to the forces at work within it would allow
the same beauty and unfoldment to enter the soul, and this avenue was
particularly recommended for children. Using whatever natural settings
and opportunities are around you already, take time to walk, to stop
silently, to “feel” the spiritual manifestations in nature.
This activity, done often, makes gradually for a greater and greater
sense of the mood in the setting and enables both parent and child to
attune to, or “be in accord” with, the God that is within
both nature and the self. Do not ask your child to verbalize his or
her response at the time (unless it is given spontaneously), but look
for small gradual changes or expressions that indicate an inner awareness
is taking place over a period of weeks or months.
The following are a few suggestions for
enjoying and sharing the wonder of nature.
- Take walks in various
natural environments: in a pine forest, near moving water (a stream,
river), by large bodies of water (especially the ocean).
- Experience some of the
manifestations of nature: rain, fog, snow, wind, storm.
- Lie down and observe
sky, clouds, stars, trees.
- Close your eyes and
listen for nature’s sounds in different places.
- Take a walk in the same
places in different seasons.
- Watch a sunset or a
sunrise.
- Observe a bird feeder
(Make one!), baby birds in a nest (without disturbing them), or animals
on their ;natural trails in the woods. (Sit quietly beside a trail.)
- Smell and touch various
plants in a garden with your eyes closed.
- Hold baby animals (kitten,
chick, hamster, etc.).
- Make and give items
from nature (potpourri, herb pillows, mixed bird seed).
- Use other suggestions
that cam assist you in sharing nature with children.
Prayer and Meditation
Prayer and meditation were mentioned often
in the Cayce readings; in fact an entire chapter on prayer and meditation
in A Search For God (A.R.E. study group text) came from the readings.
Prayer was seen as a conscious turning of the mind to the God Force,
while meditation was defined as listening to the God Force within. Children
as young as four and six years old were given suggested affirmations
for meditation, often in conjunction with massage, vibration, or suggestive
therapeutics.
The following are general suggestions for
using prayer and meditation with children.
- Meditate daily yourself.
- Allow a quiet time for
each child daily. This can include emptying out worries briefly, prayer,
and/or meditation.
- Practice “inside
listening” by first using a short affirmation spoken aloud and
then letting your child hear it within the self.
- Meditate with your child.
(Choose an affirmation keyed to the child’s or family’s
ideal; have a “cleansing” routine of handwashing, etc.;
sit or lie in a comfortable position with clothing loose; do head
and neck exercises if desired; breathe in through left nostril and
out through mouth, then in through right nostril and out through mouth;
play low music if desired; repeat the chosen affirmation aloud, and
have the child repeat it and hear it with his/her “inside”
voice and ears; close with prayer.)
- Have a family/group
prayer or meditation time.
- Practice with your child
the surrounding of the self with God’s light.
- Pray daily yourself
(in thanksgiving, awe and love; taking your needs, requests, and problems
to God; praying for your child).
- Help your child begin
to “send thoughts” to God both at regular times and spontaneously.
- Give small spontaneous
prayers yourself (silently or out loud) at times when you feel a special
outpouring of love or thanks or need for Him.
- Do a kind deed with
your child for someone else, as a silent prayer of “doingness.”
- Have a special place
for quietness and privacy in your home, with symbols of God’s
love and peace.
- Use other suggestions
from books like Deborah Rozman’s Meditating with Children
and Meditation for Children.
Dreams
Many of Edgar
Cayce’s readings for children advised working with their dreams.
The readings viewed dreams as a natural experience, a gift of God for
understanding the self, finding answers, discovering one’s purpose
in life, and most important of all, awakening the spiritual consciousness.
Parents were advised to show interest in their child’s dreams,
listen to them without judgment (assuming the child’s point of
view in hearing them), and view them in the context of the child’s
spiritual ideal to help the child deal with them in a creative and spiritual
manner.
The following are suggestions for helping
your child work with his/her dreams.
- Remember your own dreams,
write them down, and use them for understanding and help.
- Encourage, listen to,
and accept with interest your child’s dreams.
- Suggest that dreams
are messages from within. Let your child tell you how a dream made
her/him feel.
- Write down your child’s
dreams. Review the log occasionally for insight. Your child may want
to read the log years later when s/he is older.
- Check for any precognitive
dreams. Let your child know the possibility of learning about a future
event through dreams.
- Keep a family dream
book.
- If nightmares are relayed,
help the child to recreate the dream and come to a satisfactory conclusion;
e.g., if a child dreams of an uncontrollable fire, let him watch the
fire get small enough to toast a marshmallow over it.
- Have a special morning
time for remembering and telling dreams (at breakfast, etc.)
- Teach your child to
use the pre-sleep suggestion, “I will remember my dreams.”
- Help your child act
on his/her dreams in a manner that is in keeping with her/his ideal.
Often following through on a dream in a physical way (e.g., planting
a garden if she/he dreamed about doing that) will help give greater
awareness of the meaning and bring the reality further into the experience
of the self.
- Give thanks for dreams!
Intuition and Psychic Awareness
On a number of occasions parents asked Edgar
Cayce for information concerning the psychic abilities of their children,
how they could be developed, and what roles the parents should play
with regard to such abilities. The following are suggestions from the
readings along these lines:
- Pay special attention
to your own spiritual life so that you may be a suitable channel for
training, in accord with whatever is most helpful for your child’s
development spiritually.
- Allow the visions, experiences,
intuitive feelings to be expressed, and show normal interest in them
as in any other development in your child.
- Acknowledge the infinite
Source of the experience; teach your child to commune with the Source
and to use the information constructively.
- Keep a record of the
experiences.
- Find and share stories
of other children and adults who have psychic abilities.
- Give your child contact
with other children who are open to the possibility of psychic abilities.
- Especially emphasize
the spiritual aspects of lift in your home and in the guidance of
your child: ideals and their practical application, times for prayer
and meditation, spiritual instructions in suggestion and the use of
the imagination, reading of and guidance from the Bible and its sources,
ways of understanding the sources of information.
- Be sure your child has
plenty of opportunities to participate in right-brain oriented activities
(nature, color, art, music, movement), those that are creative and
imaginative–along with all the other normal life experiences.
- Make sure that a natural,
balanced diet is part of your child’s lifestyle.
- Keep true balance in
everything, in all your child’s activities, with remembrance
of the spiritual Source.
CHAPTER 3–GUIDING THE WILL
The Cayce readings indicated that Will is
one of the primary God-given attributes of the soul. It is the motivating
power that allows self-determination and choice. Through will the soul
may use or abuse the Creative Force within. The readings were emphatic
that during the formative years (the first 12-14 years), parents must
carefully and sensitively guide the child’s will until he or she
can use it appropriately to guide the self. Neither coddling their child
nor breaking the will with force, parents need to find creative ways
to reach their child’s inner self, enlist the self’s choice
to work with its highest purpose, and guide the child to choose, focus,
and act based on that ideal.
Keying to Personality
Suggestions in the Cayce readings for guiding
the will were for the most part given for specific children and therefore,
as in all the readings for individuals, they were keyed to the particular
needs of each person. However, Carolyn DiPaolo in her book Teaching
for Wholeness has categorized a number of types of children by temperament
and personality, along with general directions from their ;individual
readings that would suggest methods for training the will in that type
of child. To use the following list (drawn from Teaching for Wholeness),
first observe your own child and note recurring types of behavior or
temperament, look at the list for some suggested compatible guiding
principles, go within yourself to see whether those techniques seem
appropriate for you to use with your child, and try those methods, considering
also the other sections of this chapter.
Temperament Types
- Argumentative Child:
Always give reasons, positively but firmly stated. [1208-1]
- Artistic Child: Compliment
artistic tendencies to foster greater interest in that field. [2459-1]
- Determined Child: Train
equally in the spiritual, mental and physical for clear decision making.
[2824-1]
- Emotionally Harsh Child:
Guide in demonstrations of softer nature; reach with music. [1227-1]
- Even-Tempered Child:
Keep activities balanced; no excessiveness in any direction. [628-1]
- Fearful Child: Be patient;
never scold; love gently. [3162-1]
- Fearless Child: Use
reason, persuasion, and firmness to guide actions. [2542-1]
- Gifted in Arts: Lead
to express for the higher good, not selfish reasons. [5398-1]
- Grudge-Bearing Child:
Replace “getting even” attitude with determination to
excel. [305-3]
- Inferiority Complex:
Use love and immediate explanations; use blue and white colors to
temper the problem. [2683-1]
- Intuitive Child: Guide
with love and teach to use inner knowledge practically. [1911-1]
- Moody Child: Give balance
in activities and model the “truth” concepts for her.
[1939-1]
- Psychic Child: Allow
the child to express the psychic ability; enlist a professional at
age 6. [3069-1]
- Reasonable Child: Kindness
will guide, scolding will not. [1635-3]
- Sadistic Child: Help
child to get more perspective on use of will power. [4211-1]
- Sensitive Child: Train
with love and gentleness; will respond to art and music. [559-7]
- Strong-Minded Child:
Teach self-control; guide by reason and occasionally use force. [2148-7]
- Strong-Willed Child:
Train to act for constructive purposes. [1417-1]
- Stubborn Child: Train
the child by love and reason, not by driving him. [1417-1]
Personality Types
- Adventurer: Connect
purpose with the innate need to travel, stability with adventure.
[2661-1]
- Backward Child: Protect
from being imposed on bring out by activities in nature and the arts.
[2607-1]
- Critical Child: Direct
his critical manner in constructive ways. [1700-1]
- Doubter: Build belief
with experiences; use patience and persistence. [1647-1]
- Drifter: Stress constructive
reasons for actions; direct his formulated plans by comparison. [1426-1]
- Easily Discouraged:
Help child to set goals with a meaningful purpose. [2572-1]
- Easily Led Child: Guide
to express self in emotions and abilities. [1206-3]
- Extremist: Give stability,
purposefulness, and spiritual perspective; give training to direct
emotions. [2005-1]
- Free Thinker: Train
to make beliefs practical in application. [857-1]
- Independent Child: Give
a balanced routine and do not leave totally to own activities. [773-1]
- Leader: Guide the thinking
to include purposeful actions, not just self-glory. [1332-1]
- Meddler: Guide his enthusiasm
of seeking relationships into channels of usefulness. [2890-2]
- Neglectful Child: Approach
work in a sequential way for attention to details. [3204-1]
- Outdoor Child: Allow
nature and outdoor activities to dominate his younger years. [1788-3]
- Quick Learner: Train
to watch for details; use reasoning. [2308-1]
- Quick Learner: Balance
the mental activities with the physical activities. [4084-1]
- Rigid Child: Balance
exactness with a sense of humor. [2648-1]
- Self-Conscious Child:
Give reasons for rules; teach to listen and speak in consideration
of others. [2922-1]
- Serious Child: Aid in
seeing and giving pleasant surprises to others; be imaginative. [1647-1]
- Slow Learner: Compliment;
encourage unusual memory; train in purposefulness; use sequential
steps. [305-3]
- Slow Learner: Allow
the subconscious impressions; give time to coordinate ideas. [758-27]
- Teasing Disposition:
Take away privileges to curb teasing. [758-27]
Choice and Purposeful Activity
In any child the will manifests to a greater
or lesser degree. One whose will is weak or broken needs to be encouraged
to develop a stronger desire or determination gradually, through purposeful
activity directed toward a goal the child is interested in. For a child
whose will is especially strong, the Cayce readings encouraged giving
the child choices within limits, to allow her or him to grow by positive,
helpful use of the strong desires, hopes, and emotions that are already
part of the self.
The following are suggestions for guiding
choices and purposeful activity.
For children who need
stronger wills:
- Read or tell stories
of children or heroes who had strong desires and used them for good.
- Encourage your child
in areas where there is already an interest, to build on that desire.
- Help your child have
an interesting purpose for doing things of little interest (e.g.,
get himself dressed so you can take the beach walk.)
- Lovingly explain exactly
why certain things are needed when one is in this material world.
- Help your child see
some of the choices or alternatives. He or she may need training in
seeing that there is a choice or a purposeful goal.
- Break activities into
small steps so that your child understands each step. Set attainable
goals.
- Offer a few (usually
two) choices at first, gradually giving a greater number of choices
and more responsibility in reaching a goal (e.g., in making bread,
let your child choose to pour or stir ingredients, wash or put away
utensils, etc.; after using this procedure many times, have him or
her choose several actions at one step of the recipe, doing more and
more of each step, until s/he can do it all him/herself).
- Encourage often; praise
even small achievements.
- Be patient, kind, gentle,
and joyous!
For strong-willed children:
- Read or tell stories
about benevolent, powerful heroes who used their desires for peaceful,
harmonious, helpful purposes.
- Help your child plan
constructive projects that s/he finds exciting, following through
step by step.
- Tell your child about
family plans ahead of time, and if possible, give her or him choices
between two options within the plans. This develops his/her reliance
on his or her own choice and gives a sense of why one does things
a certain way.
- Be positive! Demonstrate
positive expressions of will yourself!
- Help your child role-play
or imagine how s/he would act in certain situations.
- Be thankful for your
child’s well-developed determination, desire, emotional capacity,
and give him/her plenty of avenues to express them in helping others.
- Compliment your child
each time you notice that s/he uses the will constructively him/herself.
Creative Discipline
The Cayce readings indicated that strong-willed
children in particular needed to learn to discipline their wills under
the tutelage of loving, firm, creative parents. The soul at birth already
has a pattern of using its will. Parents do well not to take away from
what has been built within the soul already but to add to it positively
by observing the individual, analyzing the child’s strengths and
manners of expression, raising the child’s awareness of his/her
actions, and finding ways to guide the child into making more and more
positive choices in the self, for purposeful, useful expressions and
deeds.
The following are suggestions for creative
discipline, geared to helping your child set boundaries and channel
his/her energy positively.
- Teach your child to
use calming activities: a regular daily quiet time, meditation and
prayer; spontaneous times like counting to five, going off by him/herself,
playing soft music until calm.
- Keep often before yourself,
humbly, and before your child, that you are both working toward making
your wills one with the Father’s will. Let your ideal rule your
own focus of will in every daily activity.
- Use calming methods
yourself so that you deal positively with your child and can analyze
objectively what are his/her underlying intents or emotions in a given
situation.
- Establish general daily
routines at home for a sense of external order (though not so rigid
that they can’t by changed for a minute!)
- Genuinely listen to
your child, and make sure you understand what s/he is both saying
and meaning.
- Kindness goes further
than stress. Kindly but firmly take away privileges rather than resorting
to anger or physical punishment.
- Take time to explain
carefully why some things must be. Reason and counsel are the best
directors.
- Always give reasons
for any correction, explaining the moral influences.
- Enlist your child’s
help and cooperation whenever possible. See yourselves as loving allies.
- Help your child understand
the consequences of actions and choices. Discuss, imagine, role play
consequences.
- Encourage your child
to search for the appropriate actions in a given situation him/herself.
- Temper, determination,
and strong will should not be blocked but directed to make a choice
within limits or channeled into some creative, positive outlet (e.g.,
“It’s time to go; do you want to bring those with you
or leave them here?”)
- Share with your child
beforehand what is expected in various situations. This will set positive
boundaries for behavior.
- Have a special time
to talk over the day’s events in a nonjudgmental atmosphere:
discuss choices, consequences, emotions, creative activities, possible
substitute actions for poor choices; give encouragement.
- Give positive suggestions
to your child, and encourage her/him to repeat them.
- Direct your child to
self-awareness of his/her actions in a nonjudgmental way, and praise
Quality Actions (times your child knowingly demonstrates a disciplined
will.)
Presleep Suggestion
Presleep suggestion was mentioned in the
Cayce readings as an extremely helpful tool for parents to use in aiding
their children to develop constructive patterns, change disruptive behaviors,
learn more easily, and express their creativity more fully. The repetition
of positive statements to the child as he or she goes to sleep instills
in the subconscious mind a suggestion that will then become the experience
of the child when awake. By using presleep suggestions, parents can
call upon the Divine within the child–that which is whole and
perfect–to become manifest in body and mind and bring about positive,
lasting change. In this way, parents can work with the child on creating
solutions through the subconscious instead of locking horns in a battle
of wills on the conscious level.
Through these presleep suggestions parents
can work in cooperation with the child’s subconscious mind to
help address an area of concern to or for the child. This might be a
behavior that needs to be changed, such as thumb sucking, bedwetting,
or poor posture. It might also be feelings or emotions that hinder the
child by getting in the way of learning or of positive experiences,
such as high anxiety during math lessons. Other possibilities might
for adjusting to new surroundings, for preparation for teeth straightening
or another medical procedure, to develop the child’s concept of
morality, to develop spiritual and mental normalcy, to build a better
moral and spiritual life to make for physical normalcy, or to bring
coordination among the spiritual, mental, and physical in order to correct
a physical problem.
The readings suggested that parents should
prepare themselves for using the technique by (1) pondering Exodus 19:5,
Exodus 20, and Deuteronomy 30; (2) discussing their ideals, purposes,
and hopes as parents; (3) deciding exactly what changes they want for
the child; and (4) writing out the suggestions in advance. Focusing
on one theme at a time, the suggestions should be prayerfully given.
Parents might also consider praying for guidance in developing the suggestions,
which should be in keeping with heir highest spiritual ideal.
Phrase the suggestions in such a way as
to direct the child toward greater balance in his or her situation or
behavior. For example, when working with a child who wets the bed at
night, one suggestion might be, “______________ (child’s
name), you can control your body even as your sleep. You enjoy the feeling
of waking up in the morning in a warm, dry bed.” To help relieve
feelings of anxiety at school, parents might try something like, “You
can feel peaceful and at ease in school. You enjoy learning and can
relax as you take in new information.”
It is important to use only positive statements
for presleep suggestions. Avoid using negative words such as no, don’t,
or never. Focus on the positive resolution of the situation rather than
on the condition. Express the solution and feeling as though they were
already true.
For the child to experience the greatest
possible benefit from presleep suggestions, parents should read the
suggestions together whenever possible. The Cayce readings suggested
that the love and attention directed toward the child at this time is
part of the healing process.
These suggestions should be given during
the 15 to 20 minutes as the child moves from wakefulness to sleep, when
the body is fully relaxed but has not moved into deep sleep. Use the
child’s name when giving these suggestions, and touch the child
while they are being given. Keep your voices soft and relaxed, and repeat
each suggestion three to five times. This allows the child’s subconscious
to assimilate the information.
According to the readings, presleep suggestions
should be given in a cycle: each night for three or four nights in a
row, then left off for three or four nights, then on again for that
same amount of time. Continue with the cycle until some change has been
experienced by the child.
Remember that presleep suggestions should
always be given prayerfully, in a spirit of love and cooperation,
and with the intent of creating the greatest possible good for the child.
Cooperation
The Cayce readings emphasized that working
with others (both adults and children) for achieving a mutual, spiritually
based goal is an important avenue for developing a balanced focus and
a loving, useful, and growth-filled life. Sharing, loving, and working
together helps each of us grow on all levels.
The following are suggestions for helping
your child toward a strong sense of cooperation in his or her life.
- Teach your child attune
to God through prayer and meditation; then help him or her experience
the joy of giving that peace and love to others.
- Guide your child to
understand the concept of cooperation through your own cooperation
with her or him in work projects and play.
- Help your child imagine
putting him/herself in another person’s shoes.
- Arrange for your child
to have small responsibilities at home that are viewed as helpful
to and in cooperation with the entire family.
- Set your ideal in the
light of the Christ, and help your child to do the same. When you
are working together, suggest that you are doing this work both for
and with the Christ.
- Help your child imagine
and understand what others might be thinking or feeling inside when
they cooperate (or when they don’t!)
- Let cooperation be a
natural extension of saying, “I love you.”
- Watch cooperative actions
in nature (e.g., an ant colony, birds who are nesting).
- Sing about cooperation
while you work; encourage each other.
- Notice and point out
times and qualities of unity and common purpose, between you and your
child, and between your child and others working with her or him.
- Choose a common cooperative
goal or task, seek oneness in it, and work together to achieve it.
- Observe your child,
noting strengths and also what is needed for more harmony, more awareness
and more unified action in cooperative efforts.
- Do something kind together
regularly for others in need–a kind visit, a cooperative card,
food prepared together.
- Give anecdotes about,
and practice in, being patient with others.
- Practice making new
friends.
- Give your child opportunities
and encouragement for both role play and real life experiences in
having friends and cooperating with them.
- Use some of the suggestions
in KIDS CAN COOPERATE.
- Hold up your cooperative
efforts daily to God, praying with your child that you may both be
channels of His love to and with others.
Emphasizing the Spiritual
Over and over, Edgar Cayce’s readings
emphasized that a soul’s first responsibility is to know itself
in relation to God. If the will is directed through the spiritual dimension,
through an ideal that embodies the soul’s highest purpose, then
great soul growth can take place. The Cayce readings constantly held
up before parents the necessity of making sure the will was directed
to the highest purpose.
The following are suggested for helping
your child keep his or her will focused on the ideal and the spiritual
dimension of the self.
- Pray, meditate, and
use dreams for guidance, and teach your child to do this both with
you and by him/herself.
- Have a regular time
when you tell stories, use guided visualization, relate true incidents,
or give interesting suggestions that have to do with spiritual concepts.
- Use, and teach your
child to use, the spiritual decision-making process. (Ask yourself
a question of importance in a way that it can be answered Yes or No;
make a rational decision in your conscious mind, Yes or No; check
to see it this decision is in keeping with your spiritual ideal; go
in to meditation, attune to the Source, and ask the question this
in the silence, Yes or No; listen for the answer; measure the answer
again beside your ideal; act on that decision.)
- Listen to and observe
your children; use their highest concepts, understandings, and expressions
as the spiritual “seeds” for generating purposeful stories,
reveries, projects, and deeds.
- Create a family journal
of favorite spiritual concepts, stories, poems, sayings, suggestions.
- Guide your child to
choose her/his ideal and make suggestions for activities that exemplify
that.
CHAPTER 4–ENCOURAGING THE INQUIRING MIND
In making suggestions for developing the
mind, the Cayce readings often emphasized the importance of developing
what is already there and guiding it in conjunction with the child’s
will for spiritual purposes. A child’s creative imagination, encouraged,
trained, and guided toward spiritual ends can combine with his or her
natural desires to create and accomplish any goal.
Imagination
The Cayce readings’ emphasis on the
development of strong, directed imaginative forces in children were
part of a general encouragement to develop all that is constructive
and creative in the child’s mind. By guiding children to use their
imaginations, we also can help them toward a closer relationship to
the Creative Forces within and allow greater soul development.
The following are some suggestions for helping
your child learn to use his or her creative imagination.
- Develop your child’s
imagination through the arts or through crafts that s/he enjoys: watercolor
painting, clay and wax sculpture, drawing and coloring, wood carving,
knitting and crocheting, sewing and embroidering, weaving, designing
and making clothes, shoemaking, creating and binding books, drama,
expressive movement, dance, songs, finger plays, music, journaling,
etc.
- Encourage imagination
through creative family activities, making sure a closer relation
to the Source is the result of those activities.
- Use visualization (See
next section in this chapter.) to assist in attunement, learning,
solving problems, or aiding healing.
- Remind your child that
what is visualized and acted on will come to pass!
- Have a special time
for relaxing and visualizing. (This is often an eagerly anticipated
ritual.)
- Stop your child and
yourself in a particularly difficult situation and imagine a better
one or a solution to this one.
- A younger or very sensitive
child may feel s/he is totally one with what s/he reads or listens
to. Share very positive, helpful stories, and also teach your child
to surround him/herself with the Christ Light or to visualize a chosen
safe place to keep the self separate and protected.
Guided Visualization
The Cayce readings encouraged the use of
imagination in the form of visualizations as a way of building the mind
and establishing new patterns. For example, the readings suggested seeing
the food one eats as nourishing and giving energy to the body. Visualizations
can be used within the family unit, with children and with adults, too!
Once the parent has acquired some basic skills regarding visualizations,
using them can become very comfortable and valuable. Procedural guidelines
for using guided visualizations are as follows:
1. Conduct the visualization at a time when
the surroundings are quiet and there are no distractions.
2. Ask your child to close his or her eyes.
However, some may want their eyes open or have difficulty closing them.
Accept this behavior by saying, “Close your eyes when you are
ready” or “Tell me when your are ready for me to begin.”
3. Speak in a soft, kind, reassuring voice.
4. Pause after each thought unit.
5. Continue the visualization even though
the child may be giggling or moving about during it.
6. Adapt to individual needs and responses.
Children differ in how much they want to participate verbally in the
visualization. Some don’t want to answer questions, some do. If
questions are asked, they should require a short response.
7. Visualizations can be used before school
to set the tone for the day or for support and reassurance before a
child begins homework.
8. Your child’s independent use of
visualizations is the ultimate purpose. Although a child may initially
resist them, he or she will eventually begin to use them in school by
him/herself.
9. The sequence of the actual visualization
includes:
a. Setting the scene, having the child see
him/herself in a favorite, safe and comfortable place.
b. Introducing the situation in which the
child seeks attunement, needs healing, etc.
c. Developing the situation and attitudes
constructively in a step-by-step process, oftentimes only including
one or two steps in a single visualization. The number of steps included
in a visualization depends upon the child’s readiness and the
intensity or complexity of the situation desired.
d. Closing the scene, reminding the child
he will return later to his comfortable, safe place and asking him to
bring that calm feeling back to the place he is now.
Examples of Visualization
(Use your own imagination to make up others!):
IN THE GARDEN–a visualization
for attunement
[Note: You can do this
outside in the garden, in the sun, if you like. Relax; use any of the
suggestions for preparation from sections 1-9 above that are appropriate
for your child.]
Imagine yourself out in the garden, sitting
on the soft ground, with the sun warm on your face.
You look down at a small mound of dirt,
down into it, deeper, and you find a tiny seed.
Look at the seed closely. What does it look
like? How does it feel?
Now feel yourself become smaller and smaller,
until you can slip into that seed.
Feel what it’s like to be covered
with cool earth, sprinkled with water, and waiting, silently, to begin
to grow.
Feel the tiny movings, as you begin to sprout...pushing,
slowly, breaking open the soft seed coat.
One thin shoot threads its way up through
the soil, while at the same time, your tiny fuzzy-coated roots begin
spreading, reaching down and out into the ground, soaking in the moisture
and minerals that are your food.
Stretch...upwards! How do you feel? Happy?
Nervous? Excited?
Feel the soil as it becomes warmer towards
the top until, finally, you break through and feel the sun!...warming
you, giving you light, encouraging you to become what you were meant
to be!
Feel the wind and sway with it as you grow
taller and taller.
What are you? How tall? Are you bushy? What
do your leaves look like? Do you have flowers? fruit? What else do you
notice about yourself?
Now, you slip out of the young plant and
are you, growing, growing...coming back to sit quietly on the soft ground
in the garden, back to now, back to here. You are you!
THE SECRET ROOM–a
visit inside your unique self
[Note: Put on peaceful
music. Relax. Use any other suggestions from sections 1-9 above.]
You are in the woods walking along a path.
The sun is shining through the trees. What colors do you see? What season
is it?
You come to a garden behind a cottage, and
you go inside the cottage to explore.
One of the rooms is a library with books
all along one wall. You pull out a book, but it is not a book. It is
a cover for a secret lever. You pull the lever and a secret door opens
in the far wall.
You go through the door and up a bright
spiral staircase to a secret room. You know it is your secret
place and you can do whatever you’d really like. Explore
this place... What is the room like? What do you see?... [Let them explore
for a while.]
Finally it’s time to go back. You
walk down the stairs, into the cottage library. The secret door closes
behind you. You walk out of the cottage into the garden, back to the
path and along the path. You listen to the music. Slowly you come back
to where you are relaxing, back to here, back to now.
[If it seems appropriate, talk about the
experience afterwards. Remembering details often seems to help integrate
inner and outer worlds. This reverie encourages a sense of individuality
and gives a positive connection with the “me nobody knows.”]
Following Natural Interests
The Cayce readings viewed learning, understanding,
and education as “unfoldment.” They suggested that the goal
must be to reach and engage the whole child–body, mind and spirit–and
indicated ways to engage the inner child as well as the mind in any
learning activity. Parents were encouraged to follow their child’s
natural interests to arouse his/her desire and will–to pique the
curiosity, encourage questions, offer varied activities, give useful
applications, and guide the child into seeing the oneness of everything
in the Creative Forces.
Following are some suggestions for using
your child’s natural interests to help him or her “unfold”
in creative mental capacity and as a spiritual being.
- Observe your child’s
behavior, tendencies, manner of approaching situations, reactions,
evidence of talent, ways of doing things, and physical development,
and use these as avenues for approaching and applying information.
- Notice your child’s
usual choices of stories, toys, play situations, activities, etc.;
use these or similar ones as patterns for organizing enjoyable activities.
- Ponder what kinds of
experiences would best help your child to develop and use his or her
gifts as a person.
- Be sure to offer a variety
of activities, and observe your child’s development to make
sure there is no overemphasis in any one area. Offer balancing activities
if you see to strong an attraction in any one direction.
- Remember that there
is no such thing as “too much learning” if it is joyously
assimilated and applied usefully.
- Use your child’s
requests, ideas, dreams; notice toys or items that “bring ideas”
to him/her.
- Choose toys and home
items carefully for symbolic importance to your child.
- Help you child understand
fully, and take the time necessary for that; use practical applications.
- Do not push or give
too many restrictions, but also do not let your child “drift.”
Direct a path, using the child’s modes of expression and interesting
activities.
- Explain the usefulness
of certain information.
- As each child grows
older, use biographies and stories that depict main characters with
admirable qualities (especially Jesus).
- Choose an area of special
interest to your child, look for activities that will help him or
her delve into that interest, and slowly, little by little, add to
the understanding.
- Pay attention to how
you set up your home environment. Put objects in your child’s
path to investigate, opportunities to see different aspects of the
world around him or her, especially from the natural world, to sharpen
his/her observation and unify the thinking: plants, animals, minerals;
tools; interesting pictures or stories of people or events (but not
war heroes!); objects or tools for painting, sketching, drawing; home
objects for making, cooking, preparing; useful applications of math,
writing; interesting language uses (poetry, funny or interesting words);
information on crafts, or examples of crafts from your family’s
present or past; examples of and opportunities for singing, dancing,
elocution, movement, drama; and any other areas of interest to your
child and you!
- Do not force where there
is no interest (since the preference is already built in), but do
give opportunities and keep an overall balance.
- Develop an approach
that involves the imagination and feelings. Any area of knowledge
may be experienced and assimilated through desire, imagination, and
will.
- Give your child appropriate
opportunities and tools for following his/her interests, and guide
him or her into gradually taking more and more responsibility for
setting goals, choosing tasks, and accomplishing them him/herself.
- Look to reach and enlist
your child’s inner self, and train him or her to see the Creative
Forces at work in every avenue and subject of learning. Use physical
and mental activities that touch her/his spirit; give or suggest reading
material that will have meaningful spiritual symbols for your child.
- Make adjustments in
directions or activities according to some of your child’s suggestions.
- Answer questions carefully
and correctly, being sure you understand the question!
- Use interesting stories,
parables, anecdotes to illustrate concepts.
- Make a game of learning;
it should be fun!
- Offer many different
methods for learning–sight, sound, touch, movement, etc.–to
find more than one way of involving your child’s desire and
creative mind.
- Use presleep suggestion
(See Chapter 3) for better results in the body, in retention, ideas,
and ideals, for every area of activity and learning.
- Search your local geographic
area for many new sources of interesting information: natural environments,
museums and galleries, knowledgeable and fascinating people, etc.
- Be generous with encouragement
and praise!
CHAPTER 5–NUTRITION AND THE CAYCE DIET
The dietary information given through Edgar
Cayce over forty years ago is very much in keeping with current nutritional
guidelines for disease prevention. The general guidelines that were
put forth in the readings recommended:
1. Plenty of fresh vegetables and fruits.
These should be in-season, and locally grown if possible. Vegetables
should be fresh or lightly steamed. Fresh juices were recommended. We
are told that 80% of our diet (four out of every five foods) should
be the “alkaline producing” foods, of which vegetables and
fruits are the major source. (Supposedly almonds are also alkaline producing,
while dairy products are neutral, and grains, meats, vegetable protein
foods, most nuts, and fats are acid producing foods.)
2. Whole grain breads and cereals. These
include the 100% whole wheat, rye, oat, and corn breads, grains, cereals,
and pasta.
3. Nonfat or lowfat dairy products. Milk,
buttermilk, cottage cheese, and yogurt. Also, lowfat cheese like mozzarella
and ricotta.
4. Fish, fowl, and lamb, and vegetable protein
foods. Fish and shellfish, fowl (such as chicken, turkey, duck, goose),
and lamb should be baked, broiled, or poached. Vegetable protein foods
include dried beans and peas, and tofu. Eggs occasionally.
5. Raw nuts and seeds. Especially almonds.
6. Six to eight glasses of plain water daily.
Also herb teas and fresh juices. (Smaller amounts of water for young
children.)
7. Only limited amounts of:
a. Oils and butter (high in total fat)
b. Eggs (high in cholesterol, but good sources
of protein and iron)
c. Honey (a concentrated sweetener)
d. Cheese (most are high in fat)
e. Wine
f. Desserts, such as puddings, custards,
cooked fruits, and ice cream
8. Foods to avoid:
a. Fried foods (deep fried foods like doughnuts,
deep fried fish or chicken, french fries, and so on)
b. Refined foods (that is, foods made with
white flour or white sugar, like breads, cakes, pastries, pies, cookies,
candy, and pasta)
c. Carbonated beverages (soda and beer)
d. Beef (once a week or less)
e. Pork (except occasional crisp bacon)
f. Alcohol (except occasional wine)
These guidelines are appropriate for children
as well as adults. It is vitally important to start children out with
good food choices early in life. The eating habits that we learn in
childhood are likely to last a lifetime, for as the saying goes, “As
the twig is bent, so grows the tree.” Children raised on Twinkies
and Ho-Ho’s think of these foods as the norm, and old habits are
hard to break!
Suggested Menus:
BREAKFAST
Citrus fruit or cereal. (Do not combine
these at the same meal.)
Boiled or scrambled egg occasionally
Whole wheat toast
Glass of milk (not with citrus fruit)
LUNCH
Raw vegetable salad (green leafy vegetables,
combined in a salad with oil dressing or mayonnaise) and/or
Vegetable soup
One slice bread and butter
Beverage
SNACKS
Fresh vegetables (cauliflower, pepper strips,
broccoli, radishes, carrots, mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers,
zucchini sticks, or celery) to munch on or dip. Cover cleaned, cut vegetables
with a little cold water so they are ready and waiting in the refrigerator.
Remember to steam vegetables for children under age three.
Dips for vegetables (Let children mix instant
soup with plain yogurt; smooth out cottage cheese in a blender with
plain yogurt)
Peanut butter or other nut butter for children
to spread on celery or cucumber sticks.
Carrot and raisin salad, or hot homemade
vegetable soup
Fruit, cut in different shapes (melon wedges,
pineapple chunks, watermelon balls or slices, peaches, plums, apricots,
grapes, applesauce, fresh berries, pears, and cherries)
Yogurt dip for fresh fruit; or use whole-wheat
pretzel sticks as skewers for fruit kabobs
Frozen fruit for hot days (bananas, grapes,
cherries)
Baked apples for cold days (Fill cored apples
with raisins or chopped dried fruit, drizzle with honey, add a dash
of cinnamon, and top with chopped nuts. Bake at 350 for 45 minutes,
or microwave, covered, on high for 2-3 minutes, until soft.)
Orange slices, grapefruit wedges, melons,
orange juice, and raw apples make great snacks. However, these should
be eaten alone and not with whole grains or milk, according to the Cayce
readings.
SUPPER
Meat: fish, fowl or lamb
Cooked vegetables (a variety of above and
below ground, yellow and green vegetables)
Beverage
Dessert if desired (especially ones made
with gelatin, for children)
The following are further suggestions for
optimizing your child’s nutrition, awareness and intake.
- Give your child whole
milk up to the age of two or three. The rationale for this current
practice is that children at this age are experiencing such rapid
growth that the extra fat is not harmful and probably beneficial for
growth.
- After age three, begin
to switch children over to lowfat and nonfat dairy products. Evidence
of coronary artery disease has been found in ten year olds, indicating
that a lifetime habit of low fat intake should begin early in childhood
to help prevent heart disease, several types of cancer, and obesity.
- Be sure that foods for
infants and very young children are naturally soft or lightly steamed.
Youngsters under three are not capable of properly chewing such foods
as raw carrots, celery with the strings, fresh corn, raw apples with
peels, nuts, popcorn, etc. Fresh fruit or vegetable juices, as well
as 100% fruit juices that are frozen or canned, are excellent.
- Involve your children
in growing food (even sprouts help!)
- Let the children help
you in shopping and choosing, allowing them to pick out in the produce
department whatever they want. Shop at produce or farmers markets,
natural food stores, co-ops as well as the supermarket.
- Share cooking and cleaning
up with your children, making it a fun time together.
- Encourage children to
listen to their own bodies (hunger signals like lack of energy or
grumpiness, etc.)
- For meals, take into
consideration the activity level of the day and the child. The less
active the child, the greater the intake of alkaline foods; exercise
burns off the acidic foods faster.
- Try some kitchen science
projects for understanding how some foods react in combination: add
baking soda (sodium bicarbonate) to vinegar (acetic acid) to produce
carbon dioxide with wonderful bubbles; add some lemon or orange juice
to milk, and watch the milk curdle. Seeing these reactions happen
helps explain why citrus fruits should not be combined in a meal with
milk, or gives another realistic sense of what can happen internally.
(For a whole book full of kitchen projects, see Science Experiments
You Can Eat–but try to use experiments from it that don’t
use sugar.)
- Keep food portions at
meals small enough to be eaten easily; it’s better to have requests
for seconds.
- Eat wisely yourself!
- Be sure that your children
are really hungry when you offer them new foods.
- If there’s a problem
for your kids with candy or junk foods, try tips from mother and dietitian
Karla Peterson: “Perhaps one loaf of white french bread a month,
or a bag of potato chips to be eaten immediately. The trick is to
make a practice of keeping only wholesome foods (like raw vegetables
and lowfat dip waiting in the refrigerator, or orange slices or melon
wedges) at home so the children learn to fill up on nourishing foods
in the afternoons. My trick for getting past the candy aisle [in the
grocery store] is to promise that, “We’ll get some of
those when Halloween comes.” That seems to appease the children,
and when Halloween arrives, we do buy one or two bags of candy, but
also sugarless candy, nuts, raisins, pencils, and stickers for Halloween
bags. I think the fun is in actually having permission to eat candy,
and they never seem to eat it all anyway.”
- Make meals a peaceful,
sharing time. Encourage young children to relax just before eating,
for quiet play or rest helps a child’s appetite. Mealtime is
not the time to criticize behavior or discuss the day’s problems.
Instead, keep mealtime conversation cheerful and happy. Try giving
each person two minutes to talk, uninterrupted. Children will feel
very special, and they probably won’t talk the full two whole
minutes.
- Serve each meal with
Vitamin L: LOVE. Everyone will leave the table feeling nourished,
physically and emotionally.
CHAPTER 6–EXERCISE, REST AND WHOLENESS
The Cayce readings emphasized that the physical
body is the house of the soul, a temple of God. As such it must be treated
with great care and respect. Caring for the body includes making sure
that it receives both sufficient exercise and sufficient rest. Equally
as important are attitudes that affect the physical body, such as self-awareness,
positive self-image, a desire for balance, and a focus on one’s
spiritual ideal.
The following are suggestions to help your
child be aware of and care for his/her body for its best purposes.
- Encourage exercises
and activities in the open air, to develop muscles and body structure:
walking, swimming, stretching (mimicking cat stretching movements),
dancing, rhythmic movement, breathing exercises.
- Plan a regular routine
of exercise, keeping in mind the child’s level of physical development,
the environment in which you live, and your child’s responses,
so that you plan activities that are appropriate, invigorating (not
exhausting), and pleasant.
- Be sure your child has
sufficient rest daily. Teach her or him how to relax the body before
sleep or at regular intervals, guiding him/her to visualize the body
and relax one body part at a time.
- Realize that natural
physical sleep is the body’s way to keep itself coordinated
with the mental and spiritual energies of the soul entity. You might
discuss energy patterns with your child, including physical energy
and rest, mental energy (visualizing or hearing with “inner”
senses), and spiritual energy (using a candle as an example of the
light within each individual.)
- Go through the following
list periodically to be sure your child’s basic needs are being
met: exercise, rest, fresh air, warmth, adequate clothing, healthy
diet, balance body functioning; love, belongingness, family, friends,
self-esteem, new ideas and experiences, balance, routine, reasonable
responsibility, choices, opportunities to express self, God-awareness
- Help your child enjoy
some of the awareness activities suggested in “The Body Is the
Temple of the Living God” (A.R.E. Youth Activities).
- Enable a “health
consciousness” for your family through awareness, visualization,
suggestion, and application.
- Help your child keep
a balanced routine of sleep, work, play, exercise, and relaxation.
- Celebrate personal growth
and changes throughout the year by enjoying informal family rituals
and celebrations. (See references for possible ideas in these books:
Festivals, Family and Food or Why Not Celebrate!)
CHAPTER 7–USING THE CAYCE REMEDIES
All of the Edgar Cayce physical readings,
with few exceptions, were given for individuals with different needs.
This probably explains why there is often slight variation in formula,
dosage, manner of application, etc., even between readings on the same
subject. Certain products, herbs, oils and formulas, however, were recommended
so repeatedly and emphatically that they have become almost specifics
for certain types of disorders.
The Edgar Cayce readings, however, should
not be viewed as a do-it-yourself doctoring manual. Any of these
suggestions in treatment of disease should be used under the supervision
of a professional.
A Few Basic Procedures
Two procedures that were frequently recommended
in the Cayce readings are castor oil packs and massage. If used in conjunction
with other suggested attitudes and methods, they can aid children spiritually
as well as physically.
Castor Oil Pack
The use of castor oil packs was advised
in over 500 of the Cayce readings. They were recommended for poor eliminations,
incoordination between nervous systems, epilepsy, various intestinal
disorders, incoordination between assimilations and eliminations, certain
gall bladder and liver conditions, headaches, neuritis, arthritis, and
toxemia. Individuals using the packs with children have reported that
the packs aided intestinal absorption of foods, helped balance energies,
positively affected behavior, and improved general physical health.
Castor oil packs apparently stimulate circulation in the lymphatic system
for better elimination of drosses.
Following are suggestions for preparing
and using a castor oil pack:
Materials Needed:
- Flannel Cloth
- Plastic Sheet
- Baking Soda
- Electric Heating Pad
- Safety Pins
- 6 Ounces Castor Oil
- Bath Towel
Instructions for Use:
1. Prepare a soft flannel cloth that is 2
to 4 thicknesses when folded and which measures about 10 inches in width
and 12 to 14 inches in length after it is folded. This is the size needed
for abdominal applications. Other areas may need a different size pack.
Wool flannel is preferred, but cotton flannel is all right if wool is
not available.
2. Pour some castor oil onto the cloth.
This can be done without soiling if the plastic sheet is underneath
the cloth. Make sure the cloth is wet but not drippy with the oil.
3. Apply the cloth to the area which needs
the treatment.
4. Next, apply a plastic covering over the
flannel cloth.
5. Place a heating pad on next, and turn
it up to medium heat to begin with. Increase the heat to high as the
body can tolerate it.
6. The pack should remain in place between
1 and 1 1/2 hours.
7. Cleanse the skin afterwards by using
water prepared as follows: to 1 quart of water, add 2 teaspoons of baking
soda. Use this to cleanse the abdomen.
8. Keep the flannel pack in a plastic container
for future use.
Frequency:
Five times per week for a total of 20 out
of 28 days. It does not matter which 2 days are skipped per week.
The Cayce readings recommend that parents
pray during the time the child is being ministered to. The readings
suggest that parents use their own words with the essence being:
The Father of light and mercy and truth,
create in this body that as will bring the perfect coordination of the
members of the body itself, that the soul may manifest in a perfect
body. 1314-2
Some parents combine the castor oil packs
and story period before bed. In many readings, it is recommended that
stories be used as an effective method of teaching concepts to children.
Presleep suggestions (Chapter 3) can also be given if the child tends
to fall asleep during the castor oil pack.
Spinal Massage
The Cayce readings highly recommended massage,
particularly along the spine, for optimum physical development in babies
and young children, as well as for certain types of emotional difficulties,
perceptual problems, brain damage, and anemia. Given by someone attuned
through appropriate desire and love to the spiritual aspects of the
healing or development, massage was suggested to strengthen the entire
body, aid the coordination of nerve impulses, stimulate the blood circulation
and muscular system, and enable elimination of disturbing elements.
Persons who have used this method with children have reported that it
has brought greater energy, aided general health, improved behavior,
and enhanced child-parent closeness and love. (See Chapter 1 for suggested
self-preparation by parents.)
The massage should be done each day with
an oil that is made up of equal parts olive oil and peanut oil.
With this procedure we wish to have the body absorb the oil through
the skin, so the child should either have a shower, a tub bath, or a
sponge bath along the spine with warm water just before the massage
in order to open the pores of the skin. The massage should not be hurried.
Spend from 20 to 30 minutes daily or longer if it seems particularly
helpful to the child.
The suggested way to do the massage is in
three parts.
1. Apply the oil to the back and begin to
rub it into the entire surface of the back. Begin with just a small
amount, then more can be added if you need it. One suggested stroke
for this part is a push-pull motion. To do this, you work on one side
of the body and finish that before working on the other. The hands are
placed on the back, perpendicular to the spine, with the heel of both
hands on the child’s spine. Start the movement by pushing one
hand forward across the back; then, as you pull that hand back towards
you, start the other hand pushing forward. Keep this up with both hands
always moving, and doing so in opposite directions. Do this up and down
one side of the spine, then move to the other side.
2. Then, work just along the sides of the
spine. This is not done on the spine itself, but along the sides of
it. The recommended stroke for this part is a circular motion, using
either the thumb or tips of the fingers. On the right side of the spine
use a clockwise motion, on the left side a counter-clockwise motion.
You can either work on one side exclusively before moving to the other
side, or use both hands and do the two sides simultaneously. Work from
the top of the spine down to the base. (See the illustration for this.)
3. The finishing stroke is done from a position
at the head of the body. Place both hands, with fingers spread, at the
top of the back onto the shoulder area. Slide the hands down along the
back to the top of the hips. This should be done with some pressure,
almost as if you were trying to move or squeeze things out of the back
and down toward the hips. As much of the back areas as possible should
be covered with each stroke, with the thumbs running along the sides
of the spine.
The Cayce readings recommended that parents
pray during the time the child is being attended to such as when the
child is getting a massage. The readings suggest that the parents use
their own words, with the essence b |
Compiled
by the A.R.E Youth and Family staff